Indian Railways is set to introduce a Bharat Gaurav Deluxe AC Tourist Train to showcase the heritage of Gujarat under the Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat programme, the railways official said Sunday.

The train on the “Garvi Gujarat” tour will depart from Delhi’s Safdarjung station on February 28.

“This train tour has been designed on the lines of the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ scheme conceptualized on the life of Great Freedom Fighter Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel to showcase the heritage of vibrant Gujarat,” according to Railways Ministry statement.

Boarding and the deboarding facility is provided at Gurugram, Rewari, Ringas, Phullera and Ajmer Railway Stations for tourists.

The first stop of this tour package has been kept at Kevadiya where the Statue of Unity  is the centre of attraction. The train will cover a distance of almost 3500 KMs during the course of an 8-day journey.

The tour will include visits to prominent pilgrimage and heritage sites of Gujarat such as the Statue of Unity, Champaner, Somnath, Dwarka, Nageshwar, Beyt Dwarka, Ahmedabad, Modhera and Patan.

“The visit of the Statue of Unity, Champaner archaeological park which is a UNESCO world heritage site, Adhlej Step Well, Akshardham Temple at Ahmedabad, Sabarmati Ashram, Modhera Sun Temple and the Rani ki Vao another UNESCO site at Patan are the major heritage treasures included in the tour itinerary,” the statement explained.

“Besides, the visit of Somnath Jyotirlinga, Nageshwar Jyotirlinga, Dwarkadheesh Temple and Beyt Dwarka are the religious sites covered in the tour. There will be two-night stay in the hotels, one each at Kevadiya and Ahmedabad respectively, while the visit of places at Somnath and Dwarka will be covered in the day halt at the destination,” the ministry also added.

The fully air-conditioned train provides two types of accommodation viz. 1st AC and 2nd AC.

The Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train launch is in line with the Government of India initiative of “Dekho Apna Desh” to promote domestic tourism.

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has tied up with payment gateways for providing EMI payment options to customers, the railways said.